Fellowships for 1st or 2nd Year of Graduate Study

There are a number of post-baccalaureate fellowships specifically focused on students still in the early stages of graduate study – in some cases applicants may be no more advanced than the first year of graduate study. Below is a list of some of the major fellowships of relevance to first-year graduate students. For more details on these and other fellowships, visit the Graduate Guide to Grants.

Please note: counseling is available on how to write a winning proposal and other aspects of the application process. Several of our first-year winners are students who revised their original proposals, based on grantsmanship advice from the Fellowships Office, after receiving a rejection on their initial try. So read the list carefully, and if you are eligible, do not hesitate to apply or to re-apply. For a counseling appointment with Cynthia Verba, Director of Fellowships, telephone 617-495-1814. Samples of winning fellowships are also available at her office.

1) National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships are for students in the fields of mathematical, physical, biological, engineering, and behavioral and social sciences, including the history and philosophy of science. The awards are open only to applicants who are citizens or nationals of the U.S. or permanent residents. While they focus on students at the beginning stage of graduate study, under a new policy G2s may also apply. The new policy also allows students who are in a research-based terminal Master’s Programs to apply. The award is available for maximum tenure periods of three years usable over a five-year period. There is a $30,000 stipend for 12-month tenures, and a cost-of-education allowance of $10,500 per tenure year. A $1,000 International Research Travel Allowance is also available. Application deadline is in early November. Visit their website for the most current information; applications will be available in August.

Website: http://www.nsfgrfp.org
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Phone: (866) NSF-GRFP (866-673-4737)
Address: GRF Operations Center
1818 N Street NW, Suite T-50
Washington, DC 20036-2479

2) Ford Foundation Diversity Fellowships: Pre-doctoral are three-year awards in the fields of behavioral and social sciences, literature & languages, history, philosophy & religion, life sciences, chemistry, earth sciences, physics & astronomy, engineering, mathematics, and computer science. They have an annual stipend, institutional award in lieu of tuition and fees, and expenses paid to attend three Conferences of Ford Fellows. There are around 60 of these awards, which are open to U.S. citizens or nationals who are members of the following minority groups: Alaskan Natives (Eskimo or Aleut), Native American Indians, Black/African Americans, Mexican Americans/Chicanos, Native Pacific Islanders (Polynesian or Micronesian), and Puerto Ricans. They are intended for students who plan to work toward the PhD degree for the first time, and who are at or near the beginning of their graduate study. Individuals must demonstrate they can use three years of fellowship support. Application deadline is early to mid-November. Visit the website for the most current information; online applications will be available early September.

Website: http://sites.nationalacademies.org/PGA/FordFellowships/index.htm
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Phone: (202) 334-2872
Address: Fellowships Office, Keck 576
National Research Council
500 Fifth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001

Note: For a later stage, there is also the Ford Foundation Diversity Fellowships for Dissertations.

3) United States Department of Education Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships (FLAS) are for students who are in a program that combines modern foreign language training with international or area studies or with the international aspects of professional or other fields of study focusing on East Asia, Eastern Europe, Africa, and/or the Middle East. Fellowships may be for one academic year or one summer session. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or nationals, or have permanent residency status. Financial provisions provide a stipend and some tuition costs. Application deadline is anticipated to be in mid-December. Summer fellowships are also available, where the deadline is also anticipated to be in mid-December. Applications must be submitted to the GSAS Office of Admissions and Financial Aid; Applications will be available online and at the GSAS financial aid office.

Website: http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/current_students/graduate_flas.php
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Phone: (617) 495-5396

4) The Fannie and John Hertz Foundation Graduate Fellowship Program supports students in the applied physical sciences. The proposed field study must be concerned with applications of physical sciences to human problems. Candidates may be seniors or students who have already commenced graduate study. They must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents. The awards are for one academic year and are renewable up to five years. The award includes a stipend and cost-of-allowance in lieu of tuition and other fees. Application deadline is around October 30. Visit the website for the most current information; applications will be available mid-August.

Website: http://www.hertzfoundation.org/dx/fellowships/fellowshipaward.aspx
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Phone: (925) 373-1642
Address: Fannie and John Hertz Foundation Graduate Fellowship Program
2456 Research Drive
Livermore, CA 94550-3850

5) The National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship Program (NDSEG) of the U.S. Department of Defense is intended for students at or near the beginning of graduate study for doctoral degrees in mathematical, physical, biological, and engineering sciences. It is open to U.S. citizens or nationals. It is a three-year award, which includes a stipend, plus full tuition and fees, not including room and board. The application deadline is anticipated to be in mid-December. Visit the website for the most current information; applications will be available in September.

Website: http://ndseg.asee.org
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Phone: (202) 649-3831
Address: NDSEG Fellowship Program
American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE)
1818 N Street N.W., Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036-2476

6) American Association of University Women (AAUW) International Fellowships offer awards currently of $20,000 for doctoral students for one academic year to women, who are not United States citizens or permanent residents, for study in any country but their own. The application deadline is anticipated to be around the first of December. Visit the website for the most current information.

Website: http://www.aauw.org/learn/fellows_directory/international.cfm
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Phone: (202) 785-7700
Address: American Association of University Women
1111Sixteenth Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036

7) The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships For New Americans is to provide opportunities for continuing generations of able and accomplished New Americans to achieve leadership in their chosen fields. A New American is an individual who (1) is a resident alien, i.e., holds a Green Card; or, (2) has been naturalized as a US citizen; or (3) is the child of two parents who are both naturalized citizens. The fellowship is for master’s and doctoral students. Individuals who are beyond the second year of their Graduate Program are not eligible for this competition. To be eligible you must not be older than thirty years of age as of the fellowship deadline.

The Fellowships are grants for up to two years of graduate study in the United States. Each year the Fellow receives a maintenance grant of $20,000 (paid in two installments) and a tuition grant of one-half the tuition cost of the US graduate program attended by the Fellow (up to a maximum of $16,000 per academic year). The deadline is around November 1. Those who make the first cut will be invited for an interview. Visit the website for the most current information

Website: http://www.pdsoros.org/competition/
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Phone: (212) 547-6926
Address: Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans
400 West 59th Street
New York, NY 10019